Parabolic rifle rest

ABSTRACT

The disclosed Invention is that of a rifle rest, comprised of a rocking base formed by first and second generally arc shaped members, each having a generally convex bottom surface adapted for rocking motion, joined together in a generally parallel spaced relationship by cross-members or blocks at either end of the generally arc-shaped members, and including grips or supports attached to these cross-members or blocks, upon which grips or supports the rifle rests, in a generally horizontal position. The Invention is mechanically simple, lightweight and portable, easily attached to any rifle, is highly stable when shooting, and is easily re-aligned with any available target, in either the vertical plane by the rocking motion mentioned above, or by swinging the Invention laterally in the horizontal plane upon its curved base, in the manner of a gun turret.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The Invention claimed herein is that of a shooting rest for a rifle, such that the rifle may easily be held in a stable position while shooting, thus improving accuracy. Such rifle rests typically comprise some form of mechanical support for the rifle, and some means of adjusting the alignment of the rifle with the intended target.

Previous designs for holding a rifle in fixed position while firing have been characterized by considerable mechanical complexity, excessive physical weight, lack of portability, or difficulty of new target acquisition in the gunnery area. Specifically, see;

U.S. Pat. No. 6,877,266, Brownlee, April 2005, which represents a typical example of a fixed position so-called “Gun Vise,” which provides great stability while shooting, however is difficult to adjust for new targets and is not readily portable;

U.S. Pat. No. 5,233,779, Shaw, August 1993, a typical “Sandbag” rifle rest which provides a stable position for firing, however is not well adapted for new target acquisition and is also not readily portable due to its considerable weight;

U.S. Pat. No. 3,327,422, Harris, June 1967, a typical “Bipod” rest, which although portable and stable while shooting, requires a complete re-positioning of the shooter, rifle, and bipod for new target acquisition, due to the position of the bipod at the forward end of the rifle barrel;

U.S. Pat. No. 4,345,398, Pickett, August 1982, a typical “Monopod” rest, which is mechanically simple and light in weight, but provides little stability while shooting, and also requires complete re-positioning of the rifle and Monopod for new target acquisition.

Each of these designs included as examples, solves one or more of the problems stated above, and yet none provide a comprehensive solution. Providing such a comprehensive solution is the purpose of our Invention.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The disclosed Invention is that of a rifle rest, comprised of a rocking base formed by first and second generally arc shaped members, each having a generally convex bottom surface adapted for rocking motion, joined together in a generally parallel spaced relationship by cross-members or blocks at either end of the generally arc-shaped members, and including grips or supports attached to these cross-members or blocks, upon which grips or supports the rifle rests, in a generally horizontal position. The Invention is mechanically simple, lightweight and portable, easily attached to any rifle, is highly stable when shooting, and is easily re-aligned with any available target, in either the vertical plane by the rocking motion mentioned above, or by swinging the Invention laterally in the horizontal plane upon its curved base, in the manner of a gun turret.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows a perspective view of the Invention, with a typical rifle 1 resting upon the U-Shaped grips or supports 4, protected from scuffing by a layer of soft material 5 such as soft rubber or wool felt. The U-shaped grips or supports 4 are slideably attached to cross-members or blocks 3, which are in turn attached to the ends of the generally arc-shaped members 2, upon which the Invention rests.

FIG. 2 shows a perspective view as FIG. 1, with the typical rifle 1 removed for clarity.

FIG. 3 shows a side view of the Invention, with the U-shaped grips or supports 4 slideably attached to the cross-members or blocks 3, which in turn are attached to the ends of the generally arc-shaped members 2, upon which the Invention rests. The protective layer of material such as soft rubber or wool felt 5 which lines the interior of the U-shaped grips or supports is also shown. Indications of the direction and extent of cutaway views A-A and B-B are shown, as is indication of the direction and extent of the Sectional view C-C.

FIG. 4 shows the cutaway view A-A, indicated in FIG. 3. The U-shaped grip or support 4, with the protective layer of material such as soft rubber or wool felt 5, is slideably attached to the cross-member or block 3, which in turn is attached to the ends of the generally arc-shaped members 2 by means of bores or holes indicated by dashed lines in the cross-member or block 3. Also shown in dashed lines is the threaded bolt 6, which fixes the slideably attached U-shaped grip or support 4 in position upon the cross-member or block 3.

FIG. 5 shows the cutaway view B-B, indicated in FIG. 3. The U-shaped grip or support 4, with the protective layer of material such as soft rubber or wool felt 5, is slideably attached to the cross-member or block 3, which in turn is attached to the ends of the generally arc-shaped members 2 by means of bores or holes indicated by dashed lines in the cross-member or block 3. Also shown in dashed lines is the threaded bolt 6, which fixes the slideably attached U-shaped grip or support 4 in position upon the cross-member or block 3.

FIG. 6 shows a perspective view of a typical U-shaped grip or support 4, with its protective layer of material such as soft rubber or wool felt 5, indicating by dashed lines the manner and direction in which said U-shaped grip or support 4 is slideably attached to a typical cross-member or block 3, and the manner in which threaded bolt 6 is inserted vertically through the typical U-shaped grip or support 4, in order to fix the position of slideably attached U-shaped grip or support 4 on the typical cross-member or block 3. The generally arc-shaped members 2, to which the typical cross-member or block 3 is attached, is shown for clarity.

FIG. 7 shows the sectional view C-C indicated in FIG. 3, with the typical U-shaped grip or support 4 and its protective layer of material such as soft rubber or wool felt 5 slideably attached to cross-member or block 3 and fixed in position by threaded bolt 6. The typical generally arc-shaped members 2, inserted into holes or bores in the typical cross-member or block 3, are shown for clarity.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The disclosed Invention is that of a rifle rest, comprised of a rocking base formed by first and second generally arc shaped members 2, each having a generally convex bottom surface adapted for rocking motion, joined together in a generally parallel spaced relationship by cross-members or blocks 3 at either end of the generally arc-shaped members 2, and including U-shaped grips or supports 4 attached to these cross-members or blocks, upon which U-shaped grips or supports 4 the rifle 1 rests, in a generally horizontal position.

The generally arc-shaped members 2, with their general curvature shown in the side view FIG. 3, are inserted into bores or holes in the cross-members or blocks 3 as shown in FIG. 7, in a generally parallel spaced relationship, such that the Invention forms an arc-shaped rocking base.

The U-shaped grips or supports 4, including a protective layer such as soft rubber or wool felt 5 which protects the rifle 1 from scuffing, are slideably attached to cross-members or blocks 3 and fixed in position upon the cross-members or blocks 3 by threaded bolts 6, as shown in FIG. 6.

When said rifle 1, having been placed in the U-shaped grips or supports 4 thus described, is depressed in elevation in the vertical plane of rifle 1, or raised in elevation in the vertical plane of rifle 1, by either lowering or raising the barrel of the rifle 1, respectively, the curved base of the Invention naturally tends to return the rifle 1 to its original generally horizontal position by means of a rocking motion, in which the Invention's Center of Gravity seeks its lowest point, in the manner of a pendulum. This pendulum-like self-centering tendency and the “restoring force” thus created imparts stability to the rifle 1 in the vertical plane; the Invention seeks to return to its original position, and the resistance thus created improves the shooter's ability to keep the rifle 1 aligned with the intended target.

The Invention is easily re-aligned with any available target, in either the vertical plane by the rocking motion mentioned above, or by swinging the Invention laterally in the horizontal plane upon its curved base, in the manner of a gun turret. Since the Invention naturally assumes the same Center of Gravity as that of the rifle 1, and smoothly pivots about the Center of Gravity of rifle 1 during target acquisition, it is not necessary to re-position the rifle 1 or the Invention when acquiring a new target. The Invention may be easily attached to any rifle, in order to provide ease of transport and convenience of use in the gunnery area.

In the various types of gunnery areas where rifle rests are commonly used, (whether it be a target range, hunting wild game in the field, or a sniper emplacement on a military battlefield, by way of example), the benefits of a rifle rest which is mechanically simple and therefore easy to use and reliable, light in weight and therefore readily portable, is easily re-aligned with a new target, and imparts great stability to the rifle on a wide variety of surfaces, will be readily appreciated. 

1. A rifle rest, comprising a rocking base formed by first and second generally arc shaped members, each having a generally convex bottom surface adapted for rocking motion, joined together in a generally parallel spaced relationship by cross-members or blocks at either end of the generally arc-shaped members, and including grips or supports attached to these cross-members or blocks, upon which grips or supports the rifle rests, in a generally horizontal position.
 2. A rifle rest of claim 1 above, in which the generally arc-shaped members of the rocking base are comprised of bars or tubes, of any cross-sectional shape.
 3. A rifle rest of claim 1 or 2 above, in which additional cross-members are added between the generally arc shaped members to add strength or rigidity, or to attach additional grips or supports.
 4. A rifle rest of claim 1, 2, or 3 above, in which the rocking base is comprised of a single welded, glued, or molded unit.
 5. A rifle rest of claim 1, 2, 3, or 4 above, in which any of the grips or supports provide for adjustment in any axis.
 6. A rifle rest of claim 1, 2, 3, 4, or 5 above, in which the generally arc-shaped members of the rocking base may be folded, disassembled, telescoped, or otherwise altered in size or shape, for ease of portability and storage.
 7. A rifle rest of claim 1, 3, or 5 above, in which the grips or supports are comprised of clamping means which serve to temporarily or permanently attach the Invention to the rifle, which clamping means may be of any suitable material, with the function of a jaw or vise-like apparatus.
 8. A rifle rest of claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, or 7 above, in which flexible straps serve to temporarily or permanently attach the Invention to the rifle, which straps may be of any suitable flexible material, and which may include tensioning means to shorten their length, thus creating a higher gripping force to more firmly attach the Invention to the rifle.
 9. A rifle rest of claim 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, or 8 above, in which a high-friction material such as rubber, fabric, plastic, tape, or other high-friction material has been applied, glued, bonded, fastened, or otherwise secured to the bottom surface, surfaces, edge, or edges of the curved base, to permit the Invention to better “grip” the surface upon which the Invention rests. 